What to learn in acupuncture and massage majors

The core is to develop the ability to "dare to attack, defeat the opponent, and be able to achieve results". It is necessary to accumulate enough basic medical knowledge of traditional Chinese and Western medicine to support clinical judgment, and to be proficient in the two core intervention skills of acupuncture and massage. It is not as simple as "memorizing the acupuncture points and being able to work" as everyone thinks.

When I first entered school, I thought I could feel the needles in the first class. As a result, the teacher brought an acupuncturist who was half a person tall. The first task was to touch the 20 commonly used acupuncture points on my body. Only when I felt soreness and pain did I find the right position. A half-inch difference would make a huge difference in the effect. The classes in the first half year are basically basic knowledge. Basic theories of traditional Chinese medicine, diagnosis of traditional Chinese medicine, and traditional Chinese medicine are all must-learn. You can’t just prick your temples when someone has a headache. You must first distinguish whether the headache is caused by wind and cold, or caused by excessive liver yang. The acupoint selection and techniques are completely different. The systematic anatomy and physiology of Western medicine must also be thoroughly studied, especially the local anatomy, which muscles have large blood vessels and nerves, and where the needle should not be inserted deeply. These are life-saving knowledge. There was a classmate in my dormitory who carried an anatomy chart in his pocket every day and recited it during meals.

Only when you have chewed up all these basic knowledge can you really get into the practical content. The acupuncture part starts with the most basic practice of holding and inserting needles with filiform needles. At the beginning, I insert the needle into the cotton ball. Once I have mastered it, I insert my own safe acupuncture points such as Hegu and Quchi. The first time I acupuncture myself, my hands were shaking like a sieve. It took me three insertions to go in. I also have to find the feeling of "deqi". That is, the patient feels sore, numb and heavy, and your hands also feel heavy and tight. This is considered to be the right acupuncture. Just inserting the needle is useless. You also need to learn moxibustion, which symptoms are suitable for moxa stick moxibustion, ginger-partitioned moxibustion, and scar moxibustion, and how to control the temperature during the operation so as not to cause burns. Last time at the community free clinic, I met an aunt who had a cold stomach all year round. She felt pain when eating something cold. I gave her ginger-partitioned moxibustion for 20 minutes in the epigastrium, and she said on the spot that it felt warmer and more comfortable. These senses of propriety are all acquired through repeated training in class. The content of the massage was even more grueling. First, I practiced finger strength and arm strength. At the beginning, I had to practice the rolling method for half an hour every day. My arms were so sore that I couldn't even hold the spoon for serving food in the cafeteria. My classmates used each other as models to practice the techniques, how to exert force on the cervical spine without hurting the patient, what indications should be met before the lumbar pull method can be used, and what are the taboos. You can't learn these things just by reading a book, you need to have a touch on your hands.

In fact, when it comes to acupuncture and massage, there has always been a lot of controversy on the Internet. When we are in class, the teacher will often bring it up to discuss with us. Some people think that the effects of acupuncture and massage are all placebos. There is also a large amount of clinical data proving that it has a clear intervention effect on problems such as neck, shoulder, waist and leg pain, facial paralysis, postoperative gastrointestinal function recovery, and dysmenorrhea. There are also different views in the industry. Some people think that one can practice purely by relying on traditional Chinese medicine theory. Some people think that it is necessary to master the imaging and diagnostic knowledge of Western medicine in order to detect in advance contraindications such as tumors and fractures that are not suitable for acupuncture massage and avoid medical accidents. When we talked privately, we also felt that there is no harm in learning more. After all, safety is always the first priority when treating people.

After passing both the theory and practical exams, I have to go to the hospital for an internship for more than half a year. I will take on different patients with the teacher and slowly gain experience. The same pain is in the back. The young girl may be suffering from cold due to sitting for a long time, and the sixty-year-old man may be suffering from lumbar degeneration. The acupoint selection and technique must be adjusted. To put it bluntly, this industry relies on the skill of the hands. The more you practice, the more accurate your hand will be, and the better the effect will be.